re: Someone explain Tech's misfortune to me please

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Bowl payout? Marketing?

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I'm willing to bet they might make 50k, if they were to attend. It is my understanding, the Independence Bowl is in no position to be offer "deals" to participant who they "think" might bring a crowd. If i had to guess, the Tech administration got enough negative feedback from boosters to ditch the deal if ULM was the opponent. I may be wrong, but the Tech admin has done a pretty good job on keeping the focus long term.

Marketing? Who are they marketing to? Before commenting further, I'll try to find the tv ratings for this time slot last year.

Here are the fact of Independence Bowl vs. Liberty Bowl. Last year the Independence Bowl had a rating of 1.5 up 6% and the Liberty had a rating of 1.8 down 36%
This year the Independence Bowl is at a time slot on it's own, the LIberty Bowl will have to compete against the Sun Bowl which starts an 1 1/2 hours early.
The payout for the Independence Bowl is 1.15 million, the Liberty is 1.43. It equals out because expenses would be much lower for Tech going to Shreveport than Memphis.
Tech would have played ULM which they had a chance to beat instead of Tulsa which they would have been an underdog.
You can spin this anyway you want, but Tech loses big with this. Loss of money, loss of practice time, seniors lose out, recruits reminded of ignorance of Tech athletic dept, and negative press. What will be the first comments about Tech by announcers next year? Tech had a great season but negotiated itself out of a bowl game. What will be the first comment about Tech that instate coaches will use? Tech is afraid to play instate schools.

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I may be wrong, but the Tech admin has done a pretty good job on keeping the focus long term.

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If part of their longterm plan is to get negative national attention for turning down a bowl then they're doing a fabulous job.

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Marketing? Who are they marketing to?

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They're marketing the university to a national audience. They're also marketing their program to recruits.

From what I have heard, so take it with a grain of salt like what everyone has been saying.

The Tech AD wasn't making a great impression when talking to potential bowl games. Independence bowl probably told them that they would have a bowl invite if they tell confirm they will accept it. The AD said not now, we are waiting on a better bowl game. Independence again said they would offer, but the AD said wait on us to see if there is another opening we might take. So Independence didn't want to lose out on a regional team and took ULM while Tech waited. (there was no potential match-up of tech-ULM in the beginning). Tech had word from liberty and possibly heart of dallas bowls that they could be lined up to get the bid. So the AD waited on one of the bids.

When NIU won though, it knocked a bunch of teams down the pecking order of bowls and Liberty had to take teams other than Tech (probably same for Heart of Dallas). Then Tech went back to Independence and said they would accept an invite to play ULM. But Independence took Ohio already.

Thus Tech left out in the cold. Their AD should be fired for not having a more definite under the table bid from better bowls. He took a gamble and lost the players and fans a bowl game that will have dire consequences including recruiting and alumni support.

Only way to resolve this is fire the AD and play Ohio State in a non-bowl.